From childhood onward, Meng Xun had always liked comparing Su Yang with Meng Xuecheng. It was Su Yang this and Su Yang that—praising him for being smart and independent—while he rarely had a good word for his own biological son.
Seen that way, Meng Xuecheng might as well have been the free bonus that came with topping up a phone card.
At the time, Su Yang was already in his early twenties. For the sake of that tiny scrap of pride, Meng Xuecheng sulked at his family and deliberately hid in his room on the second floor, refusing to come out no matter what. Meng Xun lost his temper and went after him with a belt, scolding him for disrespecting people and not knowing what was good for him. Meng Xuecheng cried when it hurt, then said to Meng Xun right in front of Su Yang, "Then why don't you make him your son!" Meng Xun's blood pressure shot through the roof. If Su Yang had not held him back, Meng Xuecheng probably would have been beaten until his face was crooked. Unfortunately, Meng Xuecheng never learned. After suffering once, he went out of his way to provoke a second beating. He thought that if he hid Meng Xun's belt, there would be nothing his father could do. Meng Xun simply grabbed a clothes hanger and chased him around beating him with that instead. Meng Xuecheng still remembered Su Yang standing in the doorway at the time, watching him with a half-smile.
Of course, if not for something that happened later, he might have gone on being jealous of Su Yang.
So many years had passed. Meng Xuecheng had made something of himself now, but the thought that the imaginary rival he had created in his own head had long since forgotten him completely still left him feeling a little unbalanced.
And much of the time, even Meng Xuecheng himself could not explain what he felt toward Su Yang. It was as tangled and complicated as a ball of knotted thread.
Perhaps some twisted form of admiration had always been at work.
Meng Xuecheng silently called himself an idiot. How had his useless brain gotten dragged along by Su Yang again without him noticing? He clenched his fists until his knuckles cracked. Before he could speak, he heard Su Yang continue, "Excessive emotional suppression can easily impair your judgment, Captain Meng."
"Waaaah!" Fu Wenye cried dramatically and immediately stretched out an arm in front of Meng Xuecheng's chest, pushing him backward. He had heard Meng Xuecheng cracking his knuckles with his own ears! That was never a good sign.
Someone like Fu Wenye, who had started following Meng Xuecheng around the moment he joined the municipal bureau, had long since mastered Research into Meng Xuecheng's Body Language, Studies in Human Facial Expression: The Meng Xuecheng Edition, and One Hundred and One Ways to Be Abused by Your Superior.
Su Yang was obviously provoking Meng Xuecheng on purpose. Fu Wenye had experienced more than enough of Meng Xuecheng's strange temper. Afraid he would treat Su Yang the way he treated his subordinates, Fu Wenye hurried to change the subject. "Dr. Su, Director He told us that you have considerable experience dealing with serial cases… That's why we wanted to ask for your help."
Meng Xuecheng turned blankly to look at Fu Wenye. Fu Wenye gave him a friendly smile in return.
Meng Xuecheng thought: What the hell is this moron yelling about?
Fu Wenye assumed Meng Xuecheng was so angry his vision had blurred. The alarms in his mind rang again—this was MAXIMUM RAGE! He could go berserk at any second! Fu Wenye had never seen Meng Xuecheng like this either and had no idea how to handle it. In that case… in that case, he might as well keep smiling.
None of them noticed the brief unnaturalness that crossed Su Yang's face after Fu Wenye spoke.
Su Yang quickly recovered, smiled, and shook his head. "I'm only an ordinary psychologist now." He deliberately stressed the word ordinary. "Unfortunately, it seems I can't help." He said it was unfortunate, but not a trace of regret appeared on his face.
Fu Wenye naturally understood the polite dismissal. He pushed a private phone number toward Su Yang and said concisely, "This is our number. I'm sure you know about the two murders that happened recently. We truly need a professional analysis and a psychological profile of the offender so we can solve the case as quickly as possible. Director He recommended you. He said you're exceptionally good, so we hope you'll take part in this case."
Su Yang leaned back in his chair and said slowly, "Then it appears Director He didn't tell you that I won't participate in any work connected with the police."
Fu Wenye was a little discouraged. One side was an iron wall, and the other looked ready to explode. He could only drag Meng Xuecheng away during the brewing period before his captain erupted.
Even at the door, he did not forget to say, "Dr. Su, I hope you'll seriously consider it."
Su Yang watched them leave. Just as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the phone in his pocket began buzzing again.
He picked it up. "Hello?"
"Su Yang, it's me…" The voice on the other end was low and hoarse; it was immediately obvious that the caller was no longer young.
"Meng Xuecheng and the others should have come to see you already, right?"
"Yes, Captain He… No, I should call you Director He now," Su Yang said seriously.
"Then you…"
"Director, you know. Why make them come looking for me?"
"Su Yang, some things are already in the past. Besides, what happened back then—"
Su Yang cut him off without hesitation. "I know perfectly well what happened back then. I don't need you to remind me." After a while, he gave a self-mocking smile. "So find someone else."
"Sigh… child, you still haven't forgiven me."
…
He Jun gripped the phone tightly in his left hand, fine sweat beading in his palm. He knew exactly what kind of person Su Yang was, and because he knew him, he was nervous. With his right hand, he raised a cigarette to his lips. "What exactly do I have to do for you to forgive me?"
"Then please stop provoking me," Su Yang said.
…
Meng Xuecheng had just walked out of the hospital when he received a call from Lin Xiu. "Captain, there's something wrong at Wang Minxi's home."
He glanced at Fu Wenye and replied, "We'll be there in half an hour."
After hanging up, Meng Xuecheng opened the car door and naturally sat in the passenger seat.
What a damn young master!
Fu Wenye could only complain inwardly. It was not the time to whine or throw a tantrum. He sighed and reluctantly climbed into the driver's seat.
Meng Xuecheng said with satisfaction, "Let's go. Guanhai Residential Complex."
"Isn't that Wang Minxi's home?" Fu Wenye fastened his seat belt and stepped on the accelerator.
"Lin Xiu says there's something wrong there. We'll go take a look first."
Half an hour later, they arrived at Wang Minxi's home.
Lin Xiu put down the documents in his hand and quietly told them, "There's one thing that's very strange. I just saw a selfie Wang Minxi posted on Weibo a month ago. In the background, every wall in the house was covered with photographs…" Lin Xiu casually pointed around Wang Minxi's home. "But now there isn't a single one."
Meng Xuecheng looked around. The home was neat and clean, but it did not look like somewhere a person who loved photography lived. He asked, "Where's Lin Hanjie?"
"In the room. Qin Gui is questioning him."
Meng Xuecheng slowly walked over.
Lin Hanjie wore casual clothes. He was thin and his eyes were swollen and red. When he saw Meng Xuecheng approach, he nodded politely. "May I ask when you'll be able to catch the killer?"
The question hit exactly where it hurt. Meng Xuecheng took a deep breath and said, "We're still investigating. We hope you can cooperate fully, Mr. Lin. We'll catch the killer as quickly as we can. You can rest absolutely assured that all conversations and recordings are confidential. Tell us everything you know."
Lin Hanjie nodded mechanically. Wang Minxi's death had clearly dealt him a severe blow.
Meng Xuecheng tapped the table with his index finger. Qin Gui understood immediately and placed a voice recorder on the table.
Meng Xuecheng began. "Mr. Lin, could you tell us about Miss Wang's recent daily life?"
"The same as before. In the mornings she'd usually walk in the neighborhood park, or stay home and watch television dramas."
"Before you lost contact with Miss Wang, did she behave unusually in any way?"
Lin Hanjie shook his head. "No. That day Minxi said she was going to the mall to buy something. I even told her to be careful… But then… then… Minxi was gone… It's all my fault…" The more he spoke, the more agitated he became, and tears spilled from his eyes.
"My condolences, Mr. Lin," Meng Xuecheng said. "Miss Wang's mother told us she liked photography."
Lin Hanjie took a tissue and covered half his face. "Mm. Taking photographs was her favorite thing."
"Did Miss Wang like small animals?"
Lin Hanjie looked at Meng Xuecheng in confusion, apparently not understanding why the question had suddenly come up. He nodded. "Yes, especially dogs. I'd promised her before that when we moved, we'd get a golden retriever."
"Are there many stray cats and dogs in your residential complex?"
"A few. Not that many."
Meng Xuecheng was silent for a moment, then suddenly lifted his head and looked straight into Lin Hanjie's eyes. "The neighbors say Miss Wang went out to feed the stray dogs on schedule every evening, even after she became pregnant?"
At this, Lin Hanjie seemed to remember something painful. His tears immediately burst free. "Yes. Minxi was good to everyone. How could…"
Meng Xuecheng made a sound of acknowledgment and patted his shoulder. "Sorry to bother you today."
"It's fine. I hope you catch the killer soon," Lin Hanjie said.
Meng Xuecheng put away the recorder and walked out. He asked Lin Xiu, "Did you find anything else?" Lin Xiu pointed beneath the coffee table in the middle of the living room, where miscellaneous items were stored. Meng Xuecheng looked, and something strange immediately flashed through his mind. He leaned close to Lin Xiu's ear. "There's something wrong with Lin Hanjie. Back to the bureau. We'll organize everything and hold a meeting."
Meng Xuecheng led the group out of Wang Minxi's residence. Qin Gui and Lin Xiu had arrived in another car, and from the moment they got downstairs, Fu Wenye stuck close to Qin Gui, trying to squeeze into their vehicle. He had no intention of being enslaved by Meng Xuecheng again.
The instant Fu Wenye's hand touched the door handle, Meng Xuecheng's full-bodied voice sounded behind him. "Qin Gui, last Friday Wenye took two bags of your chips, a bottle of cola, and a carton of lemon tea while you weren't paying attention."
Fu Wenye: "Meng Xuecheng, you really are a dog, aren't you?"
Qin Gui decisively pried Fu Wenye's paw from the handle, grabbed him by the collar, and roughly stuffed him into Meng Xuecheng's car. "I thought the municipal bureau was haunted! I almost had the technical department pull the surveillance footage for me. So it was you!"
Fu Wenye looked aggrieved. "I was working overtime and got hungry…"
Qin Gui: "I don't care."
In the end, Fu Wenye had no choice but to continue acting as Meng Xuecheng's driver. No one spoke in the car, and the atmosphere slowly grew strange. Even a chatterbox like Fu Wenye found the silence unbearable, so he started a conversation. "I heard Lin Xiu say there was something odd about Wang Minxi's house because there weren't any photos?"
"It's not that there weren't any. They were torn up," Meng Xuecheng said thoughtfully.